Category Archives: eminent domain

Calling Japan to Stop High Speed Rail. 3 Quick Points to Be Informed.

Texas elected officials are reaching out to Japan? Indeed, 33 East TX Officials, opponents to high speed rail, have contacted the Ambassador to Japan 

Who signed the letter? Local Officials, like county judges, county commissioners and members of sub-regional planning commissions, and legislators

  • 11 Republican members of the Legislature: Sens. Brian Birdwell of Granbury, Lois Kolkhorst of Brenham and Charles Schwertner of Georgetown, and Reps. Trent Ashby of Lufkin, Cecil Bell of…

3 Concerns Raised by Residents Against Texas Central Rail

Texas Central partners hosted an open house in Madisonville. Residents let their feelings be heard. Here’s what they said:

  • “We’re heartbroken, we’re shocked, my sons have been crying and it’s not right,”
  • “I would be upset about this issue even if it did not directly impact us, because this is the unlawful usurpation of Texans’ property.”
  • “All we wanted to do is become a part of the community and be left alone, and now we have to potentially fight this,”

Bryan College Station Eagle…

East Texas Mayor vs. Toll Road. 6 Opposition Groups & Issues.

Who? Vidor Mayor Robert Viator Jr. has “trust issues” with the Texas Turnpike Authority proposed 10 mile toll road from Vidor to Beaumont

Why does the mayor have trust issues? The company altered its projections to add 25 years to reach $9 billion in profits.  The company projects that it will take a total of 75 years for the private toll company to reach $9 billion in profits.

What opposition groups and issues are emerging? 

Those challenging the project include:

  • Vidor Mayor…

8 Reasons Texans Against High Speed Rail Oppose It. Courtesy of A&M

  • High speed rail will take the same amount of time to get to Houston or Dallas in door-to-door travel time
  • Does not solve roadway traffic congestion
  • high speed rail “solid embankment may interrupt agricultural operations”
  • high speed rail solid embankment may interupt  migration patterns of local wildlife”
  • ” disrupt the peace and quiet for families used to living in rural areas”
  • Negatively impact rural proeprty values
  • taxpayer subsidies 
  • impair private property rights

The Battalion…

The Other High Speed Rail. Missed Deadlines. Over Budget. 5 Warning Signs.

The Los Angeles Times in a special piece dove deep into the California high speed rail project and found it likely over budget & late.

5 reasons why:

  • No Settled Route. The deadline for phase 1 is 2022, and there is no set route throught the mountains. To connect L.A. and S.F. via high speed rail will require 36 miles of tunnels into the mountains.
  • Rising Costs. The 1st phase, according to a confidential 2013 report, is 31 % over budget. The state has not used the state’s main project…

Houston Area Transportation Leaders Comment on Texas High Speed Rail

Who? Alan Clark is the director of transportation planning for the Houston-Galveston Area Council & Jeff Collins, a board member for the Transportation Advocacy Group

Where? A discussion with Community Impact papers in the greater Houston Area

What did they say? 

Collins said: 

  • I am a big proponent of that project just because I see the potential benefit—not only to Houston [and] Dallas—but also the state of Texas with high-speed rail in place.
  • I do think it will get…

New High Speed Rail Project Pops Up with an ingenious American-made funding plan

How do you get more people to the gambling oasis in the desert? High speed rail between Los Angeles and Las Vegas.

Which entities are involved in the high speed rail project? XpressWest partnership with China Railway International

Foreign investment? Yes

What’s their high speed rail plan look like?

  •  $100 million in seed money, to “accelerate launch” of the line.
  • The September 2016 target date to start construction
  •  the project’s environmental documents are already in…

TX High Speed Rail On Schedule. The To-Do List for the Rail. 2 Potential Blocks.

Texas Central Rail CEO Tim Kieth says the remaining steps to move forward on high speed rail are:

  •  the environmental impact statement approval focus of the next next 90 to 180 days
  • need to conclude work with the Federal Railroad Administration “as it relates to our rules for operating the high-speed rail system,” 

Two potential snags:

  • farmers and ranchers who are unwilling to sell land
  • Texans Againt High Speed Rail say the problems are 3 fold: Budget viability, eminent domain and…

UPDATE: New Federal Rail Administration Technical Report on Texas Central Rail. Central Texas Rail identifying Land Owners

The Houston Chronicle reports this week that Central Texas Rail is moving to identify landowners to negotiate with after last week’s FRA report affirming a preferred straight route for the high speed rail.

Houston Chronicle  See Also: Houston Press  Dallas Morning News  Dallas Business Journal  

 

August 18, 2015, Information Intelligence:

The Federal Railroad Administration issued a report on the proposed path of the Texas Central Rail. Nothing salcious. But, here’s the next…